Advice for Excessive barking when doorbell rings, someone knocks on the door or he hears the gate outside...

[Dexter's Mom]

Dexter is just over a year and a half and has turned into such a wonderful dog. Loving and gentle...loves to cuddle...he's pretty much over the phase where he destroys things (though the mail through the mail slot still "attacks" him so he rips it to shreds!) He also pretty much knows when to go into "protection mode" and when not to. The one "problem" we're having with him is excessive barking when the doorbell rings, someone knocks on the door or when he hears the gate outside. We live in a townhome and fortunately only have a neighbor on one side. But we have gates right in front of our house and to the other side that people are constantly going in and out of.

 

We crate trained Dexter and now he's "graduated" to sleeping in our room on the floor (or the bed with us, hehe) but we are forced to keep him in his crate during the day while we're gone at work because of his excessive barking. We are concerned our not-so-friendly neighbor would do something not-so-nice like calling Animal Control (like he did to my in-laws when they lived in the townhome). (Just so you know, Dexter goes to Daycare once a week and we have a dog-walker that comes the other 4 days of the work week to take him out for 45 minutes. He's never in his crate for more than 4 hours at a time)

 

We're considering getting a bark collar but I don't know much about them and their efficacy. My husband wants to get the kind that sprays water or citronella, but some of the reviews I've read haven't been so great...and then you have that smell all over the house.

 

My concern is that I don't want to deter him from barking completely as I appreciate the fact that he goes into "protection mode" ...I feel safe with him around.

 

Does anyone have any thoughts or recommendations on the matter? Anything would help. Thanks!

[Ellen]

I'm working on the same problem myself, except that I live in a condo and have lots of neighbors around (but luckily, nobody complains).  Riley also barks when he hears people talking in the hallway or jingling their keys loudly (but oddly doesn't bark when he's home alone, and we open the door.....so it seems more like a protection thing). 

 

It's still a work in progress, but we find that giving him a treat when the noise occurs (but before he barks) is helping.  We want to eventually get him to the point where he hears a noise outside and automatically looks to us for food.  Right now, he'll hear the noise and give a low growl, with an occasional bark here and then, but it's an improvement from what he did before.  So, this means that we need to be vigilant and ready to click and pop him a treat before he barks.  We started carrying around a food pouch and clicker with us in the evenings when we know that other people are coming home from work.  Also, we use the really, really good treats for this training exercise.  Is Dexter really food motivated like Riley?  Or is there a particular toy that he's obsessed with?  You can try the same technique with the toy.   Interested to hear about other training techniques.  Good luck!

[Dexter's Mom]

That sounds like a great option. Dexter loves his treats, but is a picky eater...more snobby, actually. His recent thing is to look at the food, then at us, then at the food again until we put something in it that he likes (a very small amount of chicken broth with water, pumpkin, etc). Unfortunately we usually give in because in the mornings we don't have enough time to sit around waiting for him to eat (or not eat)...he's slender (55lb-60lbs on a good day) so we worry about him eating enough too. I know, i know...they'll eat when they're hungry.

 

While the food/treat idea is great and I'm going to try it, the problem though is that Dexter starts barking almost immediately when he hears a trigger (doorbell, knock or gate) and usually runs to the front door from where he's at, barking (loudly) all along the way. So the food/treat thing sounds  like a good thing, but we'll have to be quick enough to grab him before he runs down. Funny enough, like Riley, Dexter doesn't bark when he's home alone and we come in the door...somehow they know??

 

Thanks very much for sharing and I'll let yo uknow how it goes!

[Adina P]

If I'm understanding correctly the excessive barking is ONLY when you're away but NOT if he's crated.  And he's never crated more than 4 hours.  Is that right?  I think keeping him crated is perfectly fine.  If he's calm and collected and quiet while crated, I don't think there is a thing wrong with keeping him in there (for his safety and the sanity of the neighbors). 

 

On the other hand if you decide you want him to be free, a bark collar may be a good alternative.  Bark collars are intended for barking when alone.  And he should be able to tell the difference between when the collar is on and when it is off (completely off of him that is not just turned off) so that you can keep his warning barking while you are home.  There are some, I believe, that allow for one bark before giving a correction.

[Dexter's Mom]

The excessive barking is when we're HOME and he's not crated. I'm sure he does it when we're away too (we keep him out of the crate all weekend and nights...he's only crated during the day Tues-Fri since he's in daycare on Mondays). I have no problem with him being crated, but I think the crate we have for him is just a tad too small and I really don't want to get another one...so expensive and we've been through a few already! He has such long legs! If I remember right, I couldn't find one bigger than the one we got, so I think that's why we got it.

 

OK so its OK to have a bark collar on when he's home alone? For some reason that didn't sound right to me...I thought it wasn't safe to leave on when home alone. And good point about him being able to tell the difference between when its on and when its off...like I said, I like for him to bark when its the right time to.

 

Thanks Adina!

[Kami Allen]

I had the same issue, I saw a great video on youtube on training a labradoodle to go to their crate when they hear the doorbell.....but since mine isn't crate trained that wont work.  My friend who is a dog trainer told me to get a water bottle and when she barks to squirt her right between the eyes (not in the eyes).  I felt mean but did it, and one time is all it took - seriously!  I can't believe how great it worked.....now she will bark but all I have to do is grab the water bottle and she crouches down and walks away, she does not want to be squirted.  If I can't find the water bottle I make my hand like a gun and say do you want to be squirted, and it works too!

I felt really mean, but one time is all it took.....just make sure to have the water bottle sitting close to the door - she will bark until' I pick it up but at least it's one bark and not 5 min of barking!

Good luck!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I don't have any great advice, but one thing I learned from a trainer is that it's pretty near impossible to train your dog to bark "sometimes".  You have to decide if you want them to be "watchdogs" and bark when they hear something (as a warning) or not bark at all because of sounds outside or people at the door.

[Natasha]

He needs something to do. The behavior you want is: doorbell rings, he gets your attention (one bark is OK - Rouser just runs to us with a look on his face and tries to get us to follow), you give him a word so he knows you're aware that someone is trying to come in (like "doorbell" or "let's go see"), and then he goes to a designated spot - quietly - that is safely away from the door so he doesn't charge whoever it is.

 

Here's what we did:

1) "Go get on your pillow" - we put a pillow to the left of the door about 10 feet. He can see when we open the door. Several times per day we said, "Doorbell - go to your pillow" and treated him. When he was a master at that command we moved on.

 

2) Have a family member stand outside and knock on the door. Say your command and reward him when he gets on his pillow. When he's mastered that, have him stay on his pillow for a bit (30 seconds to 1 minute) and reward him with his favorite treat and/or toy. Do not open the door at this phase.

 

3) Next step - after the family member knocks, you open the door, say hello, and then close it again. No one comes in the house. If your dog gets up, don't say anything - just body block him until you get him near his pillow and then say your command and treat him.

 

4) After he's mastered that, you let your family member in. No one should make eye contact until the person is inside, several feet away from your dog and then you very calmly treat your dog. The goal is to have your family member enter very quietly and with low energy.

 

5) Once that's mastered,  your family member can come in the house and talk to you/hug you, etc.

 

6) After that, repeat these steps with the doorbell. 

 

The key is to emphasize low energy and reward your dog for knowing what to do. Don't say "GOOD BOY!" all excited. Your dog has already learned that the doorbell means high energy. You want to tone that down and make sure he knows exactly what he's supposed to do (what you expect of him) and direct him to be calm. Remember, the body block is your best friend. No words, just do like his momma would do and corral him until he is calm and ready to greet your visitors politely.

[Bonnie and Kona]

Wonderful information! Thank you so much for your guidance.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Thank you so much for this advice. We are going to start working on this too.

[Lesley, Wellington & Bingley]

 

I am trying to teach my dogs that when theres a knock on the door they get a treat for coming away from the door. I takes alot of practice but in your case it seems that sounds in general trigger the barking.

 

Some dogs are more sound sensitive than others and need help to relax and ignore these sounds.

 

You can desensitise your dood to these sounds gradually by making the noises more and more often, but not reacting to them yourself. You can counter condition to let him associate these sounds with good things like treats - rather than a threat such as an intruder.

 

The ideal way to do this is to record these sounds and play them at a low volume. Gradually increase the volume (over days/a week or 2 if necessary) and introduce food diversions whilst the sounds are playing. Only increase the volume if the dog is totally relaxed with the current low level of the sound.

 

Leaving the radio on when you are out may also help as other sounds will be less obvious.

 

Also - making sure that your dog has adequate exercise will allow him to relax as much as possible at home. A tired out dood will find chilling out alot easier.

[Bonnie and Kona]

As far as leaving the radio on, we bought a CD called Through a Dog's Ear, Music to Calm Your Canine Companion. It has worked really well on our dogs when we leave the house. It is soothing piano music. throughadogsear.com

 

We had a Cavalier that barked lots and found it helped remarkably well. We have used it ever since... years now, even though our Cav died 2 years ago.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I am going to follow this blog closely as I have the same trouble with Vern. When I leave the house, they get crated, but I always run a fan to mute the outside noises. It seems to help.